t Pitt or his
colleagues felt the position to be desperate until the end of the year.
On Christmas Day Castlereagh wrote from Downing Street to Pitt: "I am
sorry to add to your materials for criticism and speculation. I send you
Cooke's 'Courant,' There is intelligence in the City from Amsterdam of
the 21st. Nothing official known here of an _armistice_. You have
received from Lord B[arham?] every information from that quarter."[766]

Indeed, the hopefulness of Ministers now involved them in greater
difficulties. Building on Prussia's promises, they decided early in
December to order the despatch of strong reinforcements to the British
corps then on the point of entering Hanover.[767] In all, as many as
65,000 British and King's Germans were to be sent--the largest force
that had ever set sail from these shores, a fact which testifies to the
ardour of Pitt's desires for the liberation of Hanover and Holland. Even
the immediate results of this decision were disastrous. Sixty-seven
transports, forthwith setting sail, encountered a terrible storm, which
flung three of them on the enemy's coast, while one sank with all hands
on the Goodwins. Such was the purport of the news sent by Castlereagh to
Pitt at Bath on 19th December. He added that, in spite of these losses,
"the little Cabinet of five" (with Lord Barham in attendance) decided to
order all the remaining transports to sail, so that Prussia might be
encouraged to "throw her strength to the southward. We have acted for
the best, and I hope you and your companions will approve."[768] Pitt,
of course, did approve, not knowing that while England was encountering
heavy risks in order to effect the liberation of North Germany, her
Allies had come to terms with Napoleon.

At last, on 29th December, definite news concerning the armistice of 4th
December reached London. It must have chilled the hearts of the boldest.
For, trusting in the continued exertions of the Allies, England had sent
to North Germany as many as 257 transports, and of these 8 were now
known to be lost, involving the death of 664 men, and the capture of
about 1,000 on the enemies' coasts. All this effort and loss of life now
appeared to be useless, in view of the vacillating conduct of Prussia.
Only with her good will could the British troops, with the Russian and
Swedish contingents, hope to conquer Holland. If she declared against
us, the whole force would be in jeopardy. Such were the tidings which
Cas